April 25, 2018

Supreme Court: Martinez vetoes of ten bills invalid, bills are law

The saga of ten invalid vetoes ended Wednesday, when the state Supreme Court ruled unanimously that Gov. Susana Martinez failed to follow the state constitution. That means the bills she vetoed more than a year ago without explanation remain law, upholding a lower court ruling.

During the 2017 legislative session, Martinez vetoed ten laws, but failed to explain those vetoes. The state Legislature sued, saying she had violated the state constitution. With the court’s ruling, those laws are in effect immediately.

The laws include allowing for research into industrial hemp and allowing a computer science class to count as a math credit toward high school graduation.

“The law was clear [and] over a year ago I advised the Governor to accept her errors and move on with the important accomplishments in the legislation despite her vetoes,” Cervantes wrote.

Cervantes is a Democrat running for governor.

“Obviously the Executive can exercise her veto authority, but the ruling today makes it clear that it has to be done right,” Senate Majority Leader Peter Wirth, D-Santa Fe, said after the ruling. “The Constitution means something, and this now sets a very important precedent. I don’t think you’ll ever see a governor make this mistake again. I’m glad that these 10 pieces of legislation are now on the books.”

Speaker of the House Brian Egolf, D-Santa Fe, said he was “pleased the Supreme Court recognized the importance of the legislative process.”

“Today’s ruling shows one can pick and choose when it comes to following the constitution. There is no dispute these bills were vetoed and yet partisan legislators along with submissive judges can circumvent an entire branch of government,” Martinez spokeswoman Emilee Cantrell said in a statement. Those ruling against Martinez included her appointee, Republican Judith K. Nakamura.

“This is disappointing, but not surprising as this is the same court who ruled that the plain text of the constitution should be ignored when determining whether a violent criminal, who has committed a capital crime, should stay in jail before trial,” Cantrell continued.

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Matthew Reichbach is the editor of the NM Political Report. The former founder and editor of the NM Telegram, Matthew was also a co-founder of New Mexico FBIHOP with his brother and one of the original hires at the groundbreaking website the New Mexico Independent. Matthew has covered events such as the Democratic National Convention and Netroots Nation and formerly published, “The Morning Word,” a daily political news summary for NM Telegram and the Santa Fe Reporter.
Matthew has appeared as a panelist for the Society of Professional Journalists’ New Mexico Chapter’s panel on covering New Mexico politics and the legislature.
A native New Mexican from Rio Rancho, Matthew’s family has been in New Mexico since the 1600s.